


Codename: Last Resort

by lovelyavengers (fandomsandxfiles)



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Enemies to Lovers, F/M, Sharing a Bed, Undercover as a Couple
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-27
Updated: 2020-05-27
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:27:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,547
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24362782
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fandomsandxfiles/pseuds/lovelyavengers
Summary: Barnes and L/N are trouble waiting to happen. So much so that they aren't allowed to be paired on missions together, not after The Incident. But when something comes up that's bigger than both of them, can they adapt to work together? Or will it blow up in their face?
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Reader
Comments: 5
Kudos: 58





	Codename: Last Resort

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Buckys_other_punk](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Buckys_other_punk/gifts).



> Written for @buckys-other-punk's 500 writing challenge on tumblr - congrats!! hope you enjoy!!

"We have to find another way," Steve said, looking at the holographic images of Fury and Tony. "There's a much higher chance of success if we can push this mission off until some of the others arrive back at the compound." 

"Rogers, if we push this mission off now, we risk dealing with an even greater threat later!" Fury responded. 

"He's right," Tony cut in. "If we don't push this mission off, we risk accelerating that threat." 

"Okay, I'm obviously missing something," Fury said. "There's two people at the compound right now, and the mission requires two operatives. I don't see the issue here." 

Tony smirked. "There's a reason that mission control is not allowed the pair Barnes and Y/N on missions _at all_ , let alone extended undercover ones." 

"If this is about some stupid team rivalry, they'll just have to get over it," Fury said, shaking his head. 

"I think it's a little more than a simple rivalry," Steve said. "I've never seen two people hate each other as much as Y/N and Bucky."

"And after the Incident, they haven't been allowed to go on missions together, in the interest of their own safety and the rest of the team's." 

"The Incident?" 

"We were raiding a hydra base about a year or so ago, and Y/N shot Bucky in the leg. She claims she was aiming for an enemy agent, but they had been arguing over the comms that entire day. Bucky maintains that there were no agents around him when she shot him. The next mission, he shot her in the shoulder, also claiming it was an accident." 

"I could go on the mission," Tony said. "I'll just fly back a little early from the science convention and voila! problem solved. I wouldn't mind a little vacation." 

"As much as that seems like an obvious solution, that won't work," Fury said. "It was all over the news that you and Dr. Banner would be at that convention. The fact that HYDRA is starting to mobilize now doesn't seem to be a coincidence. Pretty much all of the avengers are away from the compound, and it looks like they know that. This mission has to be done now. And besides, Stark is too easily recognized." 

"And the guy with a literal _metal arm_ isn't?" Tony asked, eyebrows raised. "How's that going to go over in a resort community?" 

"Our scientists have been working on a synthetic arm cover for Sergeant Barnes," Fury said. "With that, a clean shave, and a nice haircut, no one will recognize him." 

***

You couldn't believe the crappy day you were having. You had accidentally set your alarm, causing it to wake you up at 7 AM, there wasn't coffee to be found anywhere in the kitchen, and no milk for your cereal either. And on top of that, the splitting headache you woke up with only got worse when Steve called and told you that you were leaving for a mission the next day, and that you and Bucky would have to work together.

"Can't this mission just wait until you or Nat comes back?" you had whined. "I though Barnes and I weren't allowed to be partnered on missions together!" 

Steve sighed. "I tried to get Fury to push it back a little, but it didn't work." 

"Did you tell him about the Incident?" 

"Yeah, he said you two are going to have to grow the hell up and deal with it. If HYDRA is keeping tabs on us, then they'll be doing this now for a reason. As much as you don't want to, you and Bucky are the only ones who can carry out this mission." 

So that's where you were now, sitting in an airport waiting area, sitting next to the person you hated the most in the world, waiting for your gate to be called. And Bucky looked drastically different. For one, his metal arm was covered up by a synthetic sleeve, so if you didn't know it was actually metal, you never would have guessed. Yesterday SHIELD stylists had visited the compound, giving him a new haircut and a clean shave. Now, instead of looking like he lives on the streets, Bucky looks wealthy and put together, if it wasn't for the giant scowl he still sported.

You tried not to show it on your face, but you were definitely not excited for this mission. According to Fury, a top HYDRA arms dealer was operating out of a vacation resort in Florida, and apparently was going to be making a big trade deal within the next few weeks. You and Bucky were going undercover at the resort as a pair of wealthy newlyweds, with your job to covertly find out when the deal was going down, so you could call back and inform Fury, who would send a team of agents out to raid the resort and stop the trade. The ostentatious wedding and engagement rings that Tony had picked out and sent to you were weighing down your finger, already a constant reminder of what you had gotten yourself into. 

Look, don't be mistaken, you were excited for a few weeks away from the rainy weather of the compound and the prospect of relaxing on the beach with a drink in your hand, it was the company that you could definitely do without. 

"Stop looking like you want to kill someone," you hissed at Bucky. "We're supposed to be leaving for our honeymoon, not the electric chair!" 

"I think I'd rather be in the electric chair," Bucky growled back. "At least my suffering wouldn't last that long." 

You stopped the urge to roll your eyes at him, instead opting for a quiet sigh. "Look, I know neither of us are too happy about this mission, but can we at least be normal until we get to the hotel room. I'd rather not be arrested for murder in an airport." 

"You really think that you could kill me?" 

"I know you think I'm useless, but I'm on the team for a reason Bucko," you bit back. "Just fake a smile or this mission will be over before we even get there, because I really don't feel like explaining to Steve why you didn't even make it to the resort." 

He groaned, just loud enough for you to hear. "Fine." 

***

It became clear that neither of you was going to talk to the other, so you decided to take a nap on the plane, this way it didn't look that weird if the supposed newlywed couple was sitting in silence and not talking. You had the window seat and Bucky was in the middle, much to his dismay. There was a businessman sitting next to Bucky that you could tell wasn't going to be a chatty neighbor, so you didn't feel too bad for him. 

Bucky shook you awake when the plane landed, probably a little harder than he should have as a doting husband, but he didn't care. Still groggy from your nap, you made your way off the plane, out of the airport, and into the rental car without one jab at Bucky, which he appreciated, thinking maybe for a second he would survive this mission if all you did was nap all day. His luck however, didn't hold when you two actually got to the resort and checked in. 

When he put the key card into the slot of the room and opened the door. He was speechless. It was a beautiful room, if it weren't for the rose petals lining the floor and leading to the bed, which was also covered in petals. Several candles were lit, lining the nightstand and TV stand. There was a balcony in the bedroom and another room with a couch, two chairs, and a small kitchenette. Bucky stalked over to the bed to see an envelope, bearing their names in looping calligraphy.

_Enjoy it while you can lovebirds!_

_T.S._

He rolled his eyes and passed the note over to you, and you groaned in response. "If I survive this mission, I'm going to kill him," you muttered, before stalking around the suite. 

Bucky watched, confused as you located a small couch in the corner of the next room, and walked over to the cart that you had used to carry your things up. Grabbing his overnight bag from the cart and a pillow off the bed, you deposited both on the couch and went back for your own bag. "Hey!" Bucky said as he realized what was going on. "Why am I sleeping on the couch?" 

You raised your eyebrows. "You didn't think that we were going to share the bed, did you Barnes?" you said. 

Bucky rolled his eyes in response. "No, but why do you get the big king-sized bed? I'm taller than you, and that couch is half my size!" 

"Fine, sleep on the floor for all I care." 

"Wrong answer sweetheart," Bucky said, voice full of malice. "You can sleep on the couch, or like you said, 'on the floor for all I care.'"

"Barnes, I will rip your limbs off and hang them from a tree."

"I'd like to see you try, _honey_." 

***

One of the joys of a vacation resort is communal dining, which Y/N and Bucky could have done without. But it was imperative that they are seen around the resort as a normal couple, not two spies sent to infiltrate and report on illegal happenings. And besides, if they could gain the trust of the man in charge of the arms deal, a man named Chase Taylor, they stood a better chance at getting this mission done and over with. After filling your plates with some of the fanciest food you'd ever seen, you scanned the room for open seats. "Target is at table 20," Bucky whispered to you, dropping a kiss on your cheek. 

You nodded and tried so hard not to wipe your hand down your cheek in disgust where he kissed you. Sure enough, Taylor was sitting at a nearby table with who you assumed to be his girlfriend, and there happened to be several seats still open. You internally shivered before grabbing Bucky's hand and making your way over to the table. "Do you mind if we sit here?" you asked Taylor, in a voice too saccharine to be your own.

"Not at all!" his girlfriend answered. Taylor nodded and you Bucky took seats across from him at the table. 

As quiet as Chase Taylor was, his girlfriend was the exact opposite. After introducing herself as Stephanie and her boyfriend (you were right) as Chase, she asked your names and where you were visiting from. 

"I'm Y/N Miller, and this is my husband James," you said, giving Bucky a sickly sweet smile. It was easier to use your first names than try to remember new ones. "We just got married a few weeks ago." 

As Stephanie fawned over you and Bucky, you could see that Chase start to drift away from the conversation, only adding small remarks when he was mentioned or asked something. The two of you left dinner and headed back up to the room. Once you shut the door, Bucky turned to you. "It didn't seem like Taylor was too keen on us. I don't know how we're going to gain his trust." 

You smiled. "Taylor might not have been too keen on us, but Stephanie sure was. We exchanged phone numbers and we're going to meet up to lay out by the pool one day this week." 

"She obviously doesn't know anything about her boyfriend's actions," Bucky said. "I doubt your little social club will go anywhere." 

"You really don't understand women do you?" you said. "If Stephanie likes me, and by extension you, she'll want to invite us on more couple's outings with her and Chase. The more that he gets used to seeing us around, the more likely he'll slip up and mention something we can use." 

"Fine," Bucky said, stalking off to the couch. "It's not like we have any better plans anyway."

The two of you didn't speak for the rest of the evening, Bucky was watching TV on the couch, and you had staked your claim on the bed, first clearing off all the rose petals and dumping them in the trash can. You were slowly drifting off to sleep when you felt the bed sink next to you, and you shot up. "What do you think you're doing?" 

"I couldn't sleep on the couch," Bucky said lowly. 

"Like I said before: then you're welcome to sleep on the floor," you hissed. "But if you think you'll be sleeping anywhere near me, you are severely mistaken." 

No response from Bucky. 

"Barnes!" You raised your voice a little. 

"Yes sweetheart?" He shot back.

You weren't having it. "Get. Out. Of. The. Bed."

"What if your precious friend Stephanie pays us a visit, huh?" he said. "And what if you're the only one awake? How's it going to look to her if your husband, the one you claim to love soooo much, is sleeping on the floor?" 

"Fine, Barnes," you huffed after a moment of silence. "But you better stay on your side of the bed or so help me god I'll kill you in your sleep."

This was going to be an eventful night.

***

You woke up not to the sun streaming in through the curtains, but to something touching your face. You opened your eyes to see a hand splayed out on your face, and realized that at some point in the night, Bucky had stretched out and was now laying like a starfish on the bed, pushing you to a small area. You quietly got out of bed and headed over to the bathroom, spotting a complimentary can of shaving cream on the sink. Smiling, you grabbed the can and headed back over to Bucky. He was going to regret making you share the bed. 

Carefully depositing shaving cream in his outstretched palm, you headed back over to the bathroom, put the can back in its place, and started to get ready. A few moments later you "accidentally" dropped one of your skincare products, which hit the floor with a loud noise that should have woken Bucky up. Smiling, you continued with your morning routine like nothing was wrong. 

When you walked out of the bathroom to get your phone and saw Bucky sitting on the bed, still bleary eyed but with one side of his cheek and a lot of his hair covered in shaving cream, you couldn't suppress your laughter.

"What are you laughing at?" Apparently Bucky was cranky in the mornings. 

"Nothing," you said as you walked into the living area. 

Bucky was apparently not convinced, and you heard him get off the bed and walk into the bathroom. "Y/N!" he bellowed. 

You looked down at your phone to see a text from Stephanie, asking you to meet her at the pool. Smiling, you practically skipped out of the room, grabbing your bag and keys. "Sorry Bucky, can't talk now! I'll see you later!" 

You heard him groan as you shut the door. 

When you got to the pool, Stephanie wasn't there yet, so you picked a lounge chair and set your stuff down next to you. There was no one else at the pool, so you happily laid back in the sun and started to read. 

Stephanie arrived not long after you settled down, and the two of you chatted aimlessly. You learned that her and Chase had only been dating for about six months, which gave you a sneaking suspicion that she had no idea what he really did for a living. You gave her some information about yourself, but a lot of it came from SHIELD's assigned cover story for you and Bucky. 

"Where's you wedding ring?" Stephanie asked as the two of you floated in the pool on colorful inner tubes. "I saw a glimpse of it last night at dinner, but I wanted to get a closer look today." 

Internally, you swore, but didn't show it on your face. Of course you had forgotten to put your rings on before you left, it wasn't really part of your daily routine. "Oh, I didn't want it to get ruined or anything at the pool today," you said. "I can be so scatterbrained sometimes and I didn't want to leave it here by accident." 

Stephanie nodded. "Yeah, you're probably right. But promise you'll wear it to dinner? I'll make sure Chase and I sit by you and your husband!" 

You smiled sincerely at her. "Of course! And I'm sure James would love to sit with you two again," you said. "Both of us were worried about the dining situation because we tend to be less outgoing, and I'm so glad we are getting to know you." 

"Girl, me too!" Stephanie said. "All the people at this place are either triple our ages or snooty as all hell. You and your husband are the only normal people I've met, and Chase still has to work, even though we're technically on vacation."

"Well I'll be here for a little bit longer, so you can always call if you need to escape and just hang out," you said, and she nodded happily. 

Bucky was still in his room when you returned from your pool day with Stephanie, and he shot up from bed when he heard the door open. "How was your girl time?" he said bitingly. 

"Very successful, I'll have you know," you said. "Not only do we have a standing invitation to sit at the same table as Chase and Stephanie at all meals, but we've been invited to go boating with them tomorrow. Maybe after a few beers, Chase will let something slip about the arms deal."

***

Dinner that night went well, and you felt like Chase had opened up a little more than the previous night, talking to Bucky about classic cars, which they both enjoyed. And everything between you and Bucky seemed to be running smoother, until it was time to go to bed. 

"Barnes, last night was a one time thing. You're not sleeping in the bed again."

"Why not? Didn't you dream of me?" 

"No! I was referring to waking up and practically being shoved off the bed because you can't seem to keep your limbs to yourself!" 

"Well, what would you like me to do about it? In case you don't understand, I was sleeping." 

"Well, then you can sleep somewhere else because I don't want to deal with you any longer." 

You arguments didn't really go anywhere, and you ended up having to suffer another night with Bucky sleeping next to you. 

That didn't stop you from shoving him clean off the bed at about three in the morning when you were awoken to his hand over your face, _again_. Surprisingly, he didn't wake up when he hit the floor, which you counted as a small victory. 

***

It was perfect weather for boating, and you were almost excited to get out on the water, even if you did happen to going with a HYDRA arms dealer. And everything seemed to be going well too, if not for a few hiccups. 

The first hiccup came when Stephanie offhandedly mentioned that you and Bucky weren't big on PDA. This led to her suggesting that you sit on Bucky's lap on the boat, and as much as you didn't want to, you sucked it up. 

Bucky wasn't happy about your new seating situation either. **"You're - you're crushing my spleen,"** he whispered in your ear.

 **"You don't even know where your spleen is,"** you said, rolling your eyes. "Now shut up and let's get this day over with." 

As it turns out, that was not the only uncomfortable situation you got into with Bucky that day on the boat. Bucky had pulled you away from a conversation with Stephanie, who raised her eyebrows at the two of you disappearing together. 

He led you to the ship's cabin, and once the two of you looked around to make sure that no one was eavesdropping, he leaned towards you. "Chase let something slip that he's going to a work event here at the resort in four days, I think that's the arms deal,” he said lowly. “I think he has a piece of paper with more details, and that will almost definitely be in here.

“Is there a way to confirm that?” you asked. “We only have one shot at this, and we can’t blow it.”

The two of you snooped around the cabin, until you found a piece of paper with what seemed like random notes scribbled on it. “Do you think this could be it?” you asked, showing him the paper.

“It could be a code, but I’m not sure-” he started to say, but then stopped. “Can you hear that?”

You strained your ears and listened. Your eyes widened when you picked up footsteps coming in your direction. “Bucky, we can’t be in here!” you hissed.

“You think I don’t know that?” he whispered back.

Right as the door to the cabin opened, Bucky made an impulse decision. He quickly grabbed you and pushed you up against the wall of the cabin, and before you could react, he was kissing you. Hard. Next thing you knew, he had his arms around your waist, and his hand slipped something into the pocket of your sundress.

You knew what he was doing, but it took a moment to register. You had just started to kiss back when the door to the cabin opened, and the two of you flew apart in embarrassment. You cast your eyes down at the ground as Chase looked at the two of you. “Sorry to interrupt,” he said, eyebrows raised. “But I wanted to let you know that there’s storms out on the horizon and we’ll have to go back to the resort.”

"Sorry," Bucky said, smiling. "I just couldn't resist sneaking away for some alone time." 

You nodded, not fully back to yourself after what just happened. Bucky took your hand and led you out back to where you were sitting before. After a few moments, you snapped back into ‘mission mode,’ and had gone back to chatting with Stephanie as the boat headed back to the marina.

Once the two of you had made it back up to your room, you scowled at him. "I'll let this one slide Barnes, but if you _ever_ kiss me again, I might just kill you." 

"Oh don't worry about that sweetheart," he shot back. "That's a memory I'll need to repress for the rest of my life." 

Reaching into the pocket of your sundress, you took out the piece of paper that Bucky had taken from the ships cabin. To you, it was a collection of unrelated words and numbers. "I'm going to take a picture of this and send it to Steve and Fury," you said. "Hopefully they know what to make of it." 

***

Thankfully, the case didn't warrant any more of your involvement, which was good because you didn't know how much longer you could pretend to be married to Bucky Barnes. SHIELD conducted a raid on the resort a few days later, but you and Bucky weren't allowed to be present for the raid, because if someone saw you two, they would know that you were the spies. So you got to stay a few more days after the raid, ten days at the resort altogether, to give off the impression that you were just there for your honeymoon. 

Back at the compound, you went back to avoiding Bucky altogether. You rarely saw each other, and when you did, nothing more than snide remarks were exchanged between the two of you. You thought that everything would go back to normal when you got back from the mission, and it pretty much had, until you woke up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat, dreaming about kissing Bucky again. 

You groaned and hit yourself on the head. Why did you have to like kissing him? You hated Bucky with all your being, why did that have to change now? 

Shaking your head, you decided to go down to the kitchen to get yourself some water and hopefully figure out what was going on with you. But just your luck, the minute you poured a glass and sat down at the counter island, you heard someone clear their throat. Looking up, you saw just the face you had hoped you wouldn't. "What do you want Barnes?" 

"I didn't know this was _your_ kitchen, I was under the impression the whole team shared this space." 

You rolled your eyes at him. "Whatever." Bucky muttered something under his breath, but you didn't catch what. "Say that to my face," you muttered. 

His super-soldier hearing picked that up. "I said, why are you so difficult?" 

"Why am I so difficult?" you asked, getting up to walk over to him. "I don't know Bucky, why are you so difficult? You've been nothing but rude to me since the minute you moved into this compound, and I only started to return that rudeness because it was obvious you were never going to be nice to me. Look I get that we'll probably never get along, so why can't you just leave me alone?" Bucky sucked in a breath before muttering something else. "What?" you said. 

"I said because I can't stop thinking about you!" he practically yelled. You stopped. "Because everywhere I look, there you are! As much as I pretend to hate you, I can't!" he continued. "I'm plagued with nightmares day in and day out about something happening to you, and you want to know when they stopped? When I was sleeping next to you for those few days at the resort, I actually felt at peace for once. That's why I'm awake now, because I haven't slept since we got back from there!" 

You didn't know what to say. "Bucky-" you started. 

But he cut you off by swooping down and kissing you, for the second time. And it was so much better than the first. When you broke apart, you took his face in your hands. "I don't hate you," he said. "I think I was afraid to get to know you." 

"You don't have to worry about that anymore," you said. "Just kiss me like that again."

He obliged, and the two of you didn't break apart again until you heard someone else in the room clear their throat. You turned to see a confused looking Tony, bleary eyed from sleep, staring at you. "So," he said, with a stupid look on his face. "Can I inform mission control that they're allowed to pair you two on missions now?" 

"Shut up Tony!" you both said in unison, before Bucky picked you up and walked right out of the kitchen.

"Hey!" you said. "Where are you taking me?" 

"To bed doll," he said, smiling. " I'm not done with you just yet." 

_\- the end -_


End file.
